I believe it is my responsibility as Governor to operate South Dakota's state government as openly and efficiently as possible. In short, I want to make a better government for the people of South Dakota.

Shortly after I took office in 2011, we launched the Better Government initiative to make state government more open and accessible. Under this initiative we have put more services online, made agencies more transparent and repealed thousands of words of unnecessary statutes and rules.

In government, as in business, it’s the little things that matter. My goal is to create a culture in state government that is centered on the citizens – the voters – the taxpayers – who we serve. By constantly striving to cut red tape, to be more open, and to put more online, state government has become a better steward of your tax dollars, and a better servant of our people.